


Take me home

by DreamDrop



Series: The bodyguard and his protégé [5]
Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Damen is Laurent's bodyguard, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Fluff, Laurent is feeling insecure, Laurent remembers, Laurent's first and only time being drunk, M/M, Memories of pre-relationship, age gap, cuties in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:22:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25423831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamDrop/pseuds/DreamDrop
Summary: Laurent still remembered the one and only time he was drunk. Like really drunk. So drunk that he had to throw up. It had been horrible.
Relationships: Damen/Laurent (Captive Prince)
Series: The bodyguard and his protégé [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1834633
Comments: 4
Kudos: 96





	Take me home

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Here a little self indulgent fluff one shot of Damen and Laurent being adorable. <3

Laurent still remembered the one and only time he was drunk. Like really drunk. So drunk that he had to vomit. It had been horrible.

Auguste and he were both invited to the 5 years anniversary party of Damen's company. Laurent, then tender 17 years old and so unhappy in love with his babysitter/bodyguard of all people, was left alone by Auguste and Damen. Both of them occupied with their own obligations. 

They left him with Lazar, who was easily one of the most annoying people on the planet and Aimeric, some kid his age, whose mother was a partner of either Auguste or Damen. Laurent couldn't remember. It was not important anyway. He sat at a table with the most boring and the most annoying person on this planet. They could have taken pity on him and at least let Pallas stay with him.

Lazar, however, only grinned at his scowl and said, "Are you unhappy your Highness that I am here and not Pallas, the sweetheart?"  
"Yes. I am." Laurent said it only to be spiteful. He was angrier about the fact that Auguste AND Damen left him alone. At the same time. That was just not fair. If he wasn't needed they could have left him home. There he could have read his book, or maybe even studied. Everything was better than this horrible event here.

"I bet the real issue is that even Damen left you alone." Lazar grinned. He didn't take his guarding very seriously. He was sprawled over his chair in a relaxed posture. Something Damen would have never tolerated if he were here, which he wasn't, which was the reason that Laurent didn't even try to reprimand Lazar.

He didn't acknowledge Lazar with an answer, but that wasn't necessary anyway. Lazar just started talking again, "You know, sometimes I think he can't be pried away from you to even go take a piss, so I am really surprised he leaves you here alone. With me." He frowned, but Laurent was angry and he didn't want to talk or even hear about Damen.

"Lazar, could you shut up?" His tone was scathing. He waved someone over, took a glass, filled with something orange and downed it in one gulp. It was decidedly NOT orange juice, at least not ONLY orange juice. The alcohol burned but Laurent refrained from sputtering. He took another glass. 

At least nobody asked him if he could drink alcohol.  
He looked old enough for the Akielon age of majority. At least that's what everybody told him.

"Who is Damen?"

Oh no, that one Laurent had almost forgotten. Aimeric looked at him with innocent doe eyes and Laurent wanted to roll his eyes. He was in a horrible mood. He wanted to go home and read a book.

"Damen is his boss." Laurent nodded towards Lazar who lazily saluted. "He is in fact his worst employee, that's the reason he has to babysit."

"I am no baby.“ Aimeric argued, clearly pouting. Laurent looked to Lazar who seemed to have the time of his life. "Can I please go home?“

"Oh my gosh, you used Please. I think the world is going to end.“  
Laurent didn‘t even mock him. He really wanted to go home and he wouldn’t gamble his chance away.

"I will have to ask your brother. But I think he should come back any moment.“  
Laurent nodded and then downed the not-only-orange-juice. 

Aimeric suddendly seemed to want to talk to him. "So Damen is what? Your bodyguard?“

"Yes.“

"Wow. Cool but why do you want your bodyguard to stay with you? Isn‘t it annoying?“ Aimeric looked at him with stars in his eyes and an innocent smile on his face. Laurent didn‘t like him.

"I don‘t want him to stay with me. I want to go home.“ Laurent gave his best to not whine. However, the alcohol started to tingle in his fingers and suddenly he felt like crying.

He waved another server to them and took again a not-only-orange-juice. It was delicious. At least the alcohol didn‘t leave him all alone. Was he really that much of a bother?

He always thought he was rather useful in a conversation between adults. If they didn‘t want to talk about something they would demonstratively look at him. If they wanted to talk about something they could pretend he wouldn‘t understand anyway. And he knew how to ask questions without giving off the feeling of prying. 

Maybe not. Maybe he was just as immature as Aimeric and Auguste was happy to talk to people that were not his baby brother who did nothing but keep him from having a fulfilled sexlife.

Laurent knew he clung to his brother more than other boys his age but Auguste was all he had. If Auguste would die he would be alone. He just wanted some time with his big brother. Was that too much to ask? Was he too bothersome? He didn‘t want to hold Auguste back. 

Auguste was almost 30 but he still had no girl- or boyfriend, wife or husband, or child of his own. Was that because of Laurent? Laurent would have to tell him that he looked forward to the moment Auguste found happiness.

Maybe Auguste thought Laurent was one of these horrible younger siblings who wanted their brother all to themselves. But he wasn‘t, he just wanted a little bit of attention and then he would be content.

He didn‘t want to think about Damen. Again his throat closed up, he felt the tears threatening to fill his eyes. 

Auguste was bad enough but Auguste was his brother. He would always have a connection to him. To Damen- not so much. Damen could walk out any moment. Leave him alone on this fucking party and never come back. 

He realized that his glass was empty again, he took another one. Lazar observed him closely. A frown on his face.

"Laurent are you alright?“  
"Yes. And I would be even better if we could go home now. Where is Auguste?“

Lazar stood slowly and walked around the table. „Laurent. You don‘t look so good. Are you sure you are okay?“

"Yes, Lazar, I am. You know what? I think I will go look for Pallas.“  
Lazar pressed him back down on the chair when Laurent attempted to get up. "You sit still. I think something is wrong. You are slurring your words. And you look like you have a fever.“

Laurent let his head sink against the top of the table. "Lazar, be honest, do you think I am a bother?“

„What? Why? No, you might be bothersome sometimes, especially when you are a little know-it-all, but you are no bother. In fact you are my favorite client to guard.“

"Really?“ Laurent couldn’t quite believe it. Lazar always teased him and whined about him.

"Yes. Really. Now tell me, where does this come from? I don’t know you like that.“ Lazar was right. Laurent never talked about all these things in his head.

"I think Auguste hates me.“  
"What? No! Never. He loves you so much, Laurent. He would fly to the stars and back for you or jump before a moving train.“

"You think so?“  
"I do. You don‘t?“

"I don‘t know. It must be horrible having all this responsibility and then a younger brother that wants attention too. I am so selfish. God, I can‘t believe I asked him to come to my high school graduation ceremony in the summer. He is always so busy then, I should tell him he doesn’t have to come.“ Laurent tried to get up again, feeling frantic.

Lazar took his face between his hands. "Laurent, are you drunk?“

"Maybe. There was something funny in the orange juice. Very delicious.“ Laurent shrugged. "Now, let me go. I need to tell Auguste that he doesn‘t have to attend the graduation ceremony and that I am going home.“

Lazar laughed. "You are so cute. Auguste would kill for an opportunity to see you graduate, Laurent. He loves you so much he would cry if you told him he shouldn‘t come. Now you need to drink a lot of water. At the speed you drank all these glasses, you will puke in approximately half an hour.“

Suddenly Pallas was by their side. Laurent had no idea from where the Akielon bodyguard appeared but it wasn’t important anyway. "Pallas. Do you think I am a bother?“

"No. Why do you ask?“  
"Because Auguste and Damen left me behind. Am I too clingy? Oh what am I even asking? I totally am.“

Pallas looked shocked. It was a funny look on his face.  
"Sir, allow me to reassure you. None of the two would think of you as bothersome. They both love you.“

Laurent sighed. „You have to say that. I do pay your salary.“

"Your brother does.“  
"It‘s my money too, Lazar. So shut up. I am talking to Pallas.“ 

"He is drunk.“ Lazar said it as if explained everything. And apparently it did. Understanding dawned on Pallas‘ face.  
"Sir, allow me to accompany you to the bathroom.“ 

"No. I want to go home but Lazar says we need to ask my brother. But Pallas, can‘t we just go? I hate it here and I don’t know anyone and nobody talks to me and Damen and Auguste went off without me. Can I not go home please?“

"He uses Please already the second time this evening.“ Lazar sounded delighted.  
"You shouldn‘t have given him alcohol. Damen and Auguste will kill you.“  
"I couldn‘t know that it was mixed in the orange juice.“

Pallas lifted Laurent up by his shoulders. And Laurent immediately felt dizzy. "Pallas, I don‘t feel so good. Everything is spinning. I don‘t think this is normal.“

"It is perfectly normal, Sir. You drank too much and now you will start to feel pretty bad. I will take you home.“

"Good. Finally. See Lazar? That is competence. Not whatever you do.“  
Laurent thought that Pallas was amazing. If he didn’t already have the crush of the century on Damen, Pallas might have been the lucky guy that was the partner for Laurent’s unrequited lovestory.

"Damen thinks I am annoying doesn‘t he? Jesus, I am Damen‘s personal Lazar.“ Laurent complained while he burried his face in Pallas‘ shoulder. He could feel how the akielon bodyguard started to laugh. 

"No, I am sure you don‘t annoy Damianos, Sir.“  
"But I am just the stupid kid he needs to take care off.“  
"You are everything but stupid, Sir.“  
"Well, intelligence alone makes nobody lovable.“ Laurent sighed. It was funny. When had he started to be so pathetic?

Pallas chuckled and wrapped one arm around him.  
"What is going on here?“ Damen‘s deep voice ripped him out of his musings.  
"Damen?“  
"Yes. Laurent, why is Pallas carrying you?“  
"He isn’t carrying me. He is supporting me because if he doesn’t I might face plant to the floor and I would keep a minimum of my dignity intact.“  
Laurent was glad that his brain still worked for the most part. 

"Lazar, I told you to not let him out of your sight! What happened?“ Damen sounded angry and that never happened. Laurent had always thought that Damen wasn’t capable of feeling angry.

"I didn’t know that there was alcohol in his orange juice! You should have told me that everything in here contains alcohol or even better, you shouldn’t have left him alone.“ Lazar sounded angry too. "You can’t pester him for weeks that he should come here and then abandon him like a puppy.“ 

"I didn’t abandon him. I went to wrap up what business I had to take care off in order to spend the rest of the evening with him. Laurent, everything alright?“  
"Didn’t you start to call me Sir, Damianos?“

Now Pallas laughed. "He‘s right, Damen. You did start to do that.“  
"Because it‘s proper etiquette.“  
Laurent groaned. He didn‘t want to argue. He wanted to kiss Damen and then cuddle up to him in order to stop the world from spinning. 

Damen could certainly make the world stop spinning around Laurent.  
"Laurent? What were you thinking?"  
"Sir. If you insist on calling me that, Damianos, then do it consistently, otherwise I'll be confused."

Damen lifted him into his arms as if he was still a child. It felt nice although it was humiliating. "I will take him home. Pallas, go tell Auguste that Laurent is alright and we will wait at home. Lazar tell Nik that he has to give the speech himself. I won't be here. There was a family emergency."  
"Nik will kill me."  
"That's why I send you and not Pallas. Sir, are you alright?"

Laurent sighed. He had hoped that his stubborn attempt to get Damen to call him Laurent again would work. It clearly didn't. "I am fine. I want to go home. In fact, I never wanted to be here in the first place."

"I know. But I was looking forward to having you here so much that I didn't take into consideration how you might feel. I am sorry for pestering you, Sir." Damen stepped out of the old estate while he talked. The fresh evening air helped Laurent think more clearly.

"Are you apologizing for pestering me to be here?"  
"Yes. I am really sorry. I should have been more considerate of your feelings."

"Yes, you should have. But the problem was not that you wanted me here but that you left me all alone." Laurent knew he sounded like a five year old but that was not the important point right then. Damen apologized for all the wrong reasons and it made him angry.

How could this big idiot think it was all about his aversion towards crowds and people in general.  
"You just parked me at that damn table with Aimeric and Lazar of all people and then went off together with my brother. Do you have the slightest idea how I felt for the last three hours?" 

Laurent felt how his world turned upside down.  
He felt worse than ever before. This had to be his punishment for being greedy.

"I would never fault you for wanting some time away from me, Damianos. I am your client and you have a life of your own. Which I really admire, just so that we understand each other. But then don't involve me in your plans.  
Either you want me there and then you can't abandon me on the first opportunity or you don't want me there and then I can stay at home, contently reading or even watching some horrible movie."

He was placed on a car seat. It was comfortable but no comfort in the world helped him feel any better.  
"I didn't realize…" Damen trailed off. He sounded horrified.

"I know. I don't want to be a bother, but I clearly am. Damianos, if you want, you can just quit. I am old enough to look after myself now and after today, I promise to never drink too much alcohol again. I don't like it anyway. And then you can send some bodyguards and be an your way.

"What?" Damen sounded almost chocked up. Laurent wanted to see his face because Damen was as transparent as anyone could be. Then he would know why Damen sounded so striken. 

"I just want that you know that I won't hold you back. I am Auguste's little brother and I know you feel responsible for me but you aren't. I know you want to stop guarding clients yourself because you don't have enough time. I take up most of that time. You are by my side almost constantly and that has to be tiring. I won't hold it against you if you want to stop."

Laurent felt how the bile rose. He was going to be sick. He didn't want to imagine his life without Damen in it. But he would survive it. It had to be for the best. Then he could maybe overcome his epic crush. He just needed some distance from Damen that would surely be enough. It had to be. He couldn't go on like this.

"You are never a bother, Lau- Sir. I do enjoy our time together. Today I hoped to wrap up the business part of the evening to spend the remaining hours with you. I consider you family, Sir." Damen sounded so sincere and that hurt even more. 

Fuck. 

Fortunately the car stopped right then. Laurent opened the door and threw up everything that was in his stomach. He stabilized himself with one hand against the door and with the other reached for a tissue blindly. He had just seen them.

"Now, now. Everything is all right. I'm here." Damen's voice directly by his ear was the last drop. Laurent started to cry. He hadn't cried in years. 

"Oh my… Laurent, everything will be all right. Whatever is weighting you down you can talk to me about it. I will support you and I can promise you, your worth as a person won't be less than before."  
"It's nothing. I am just exhausted."  
"Laurent, I know you since you were 8 years old. I know that something isn't right. For the last months, it seemed as if you were being weighed down by something big and scary. I can't stand at the sideline any longer."

Laurent knew resistance was futile. Damen might be adoring, soft and caring when it came to him but only up to a point, which was apparently reached now.  
"I am just feeling inadequate, Damianos. That's all. I am feeling horrible because I hold all the people in my closer vicinity back."

"How could you ever hold someone back?"  
"Auguste is still single. How much longer does he put me before his own happiness?"  
Damen, who had again lifted him in his arms halted in his movements. "You think the reason for Auguste to be single is you?"  
"Yes! Why else?" 

"Laurent, let me speak plainly. Your brother enjoys being able to life a free life in and out of bed."  
"So in short, you tell me, Auguste likes fucking more than a loving relationship?"  
Damen startled, still not used to the veretian way of speaking. He almost dropped Laurent. "Yes. You could say that. How did you ever get the idea that your brother was being held back by you?"

"Some of his business partners told me that he would always refuse any advances by informing them about me and how he had to look after me."  
"I am going to kill him. I told him he should talk to you before.  
Laurent, whoever told you that wanted you to feel bad about yourself, but your brother never said anything even remotely negative. He only said that a relationship would only work out if they accepted that you would be his top priority. He loves you to the moon and back. You don't hold him back, or anyone else for that matter."

"Please, don’t kill Auguste." Laurent smiled, "I would be very sad."  
"Fine. I promise, but he really needs to work on his communication skills."  
Laurent snorted. He couldn't reproach Auguste for that. Both of them had a hard time talking about their own feelings and while Auguste appeared to be always cheerful and happy, Laurent knew him better. 

"And then why are you still single?"  
After that question, Damen was silent for a long time. "There are multiple reasons for that. My last relationship wasn't a healthy one and I needed a long time to be able to consider dating anyone."  
"That's just one reason."  
"Yes. And all the reason I am going to give you until you are at least 21."

Laurent chuckled. "You will have to tell me then. I won't forget."  
"I know. But believe me, Laurent, you are no bother for me, ever. If you allow it, I will stay by your side until I am too old to stay there."

Damen put him down before a mirror. It was the big mirror in Laurent's private bath, he belatedly realized. Laurent saw them both in the reflection. Damen, looking so hot he had to burn, in his dark suit with his soft curls and a smile on his lips. Laurent looking ghostly pale, and a little green, his eyes red and his hair a mess, the dress shirt wrinkled. The top of his head reached Damen's shoulder now, he realized. He grimaced. 

"I need to brush my teeth."  
"That would be most advisable, Sir." Damen handed him a toothbrush with a smirk. Laurent grimaced again. Supporting his weight on the counter. It was still spinning. "You know what? I think I am going to lie down."

"Very well, Sir."  
Laurent went to his knees right there and pushed at Damen's legs. When Damen finally moved, Laurent pressed as much of his body against the cool stone floor, as he could.  
"What are you doing, Sir?"  
"I try to keep the world from spinning out of its orbit."

"And that works with you lying down on the floor?"  
"Yes. At least, I hope so. Otherwise I'm going to be sick again."  
Damen chuckled and sat down beside him. "Whenever you are ready to go to bed, just tell me. I will stay here."  
Laurent didn't want to argue anymore. He just nodded, closed his eyes and concentrated hard. It was less fun than he had imagined.

"Tell me a story, Damianos."  
"What would you like to hear?"  
"Something."

Later that evening a distraught Auguste had come home and scolded Damen what prompted Damen to scold Auguste. Both of them argued until Lazar kicked them both out of the bath and sat down himself to tell Laurent silly stories about Damen.

Laurent smiled at the memories. His fingers drew patterns on Damen's back while he was lost in thought.  
"What are you smiling about so happily?"  
"I was thinking about Lazar."

Damen lifted his head from Laurent's chest, his dark eyes boring into him. "What? Do I have to fire him?" It was only partly a joke.  
Laurent laughed. "I was thinking about the evening when I got drunk and you and Auguste were both kicked out by Lazar."  
"I remember. You were so adorable. You worried so much about Auguste's and my love life."

"Which was non-existent for both of you."  
"Yes. But for very different reasons."  
"What was your other reason? You never told me and I never asked."  
"You. It was true, you held me back from getting into a new relationship, but it was not your fault. I just knew I could never love anyone as much as I love you and I didn't want them to feel like second priority to me. That would have happened, you were always my top priority."

Laurent stared at his face in surprise. "What?"  
"It's true. I think I started realizing when you stopped being physically close to me. First, I only missed how we would cuddle and how you would tell me everything. Then, when you turned 16 I realized how beautiful you were and that people coveted you as if you were a trophy. I wanted to protect you. And when you turned 18, the age of majority in Akielos, I couldn't deny that I loved you in a not so platonic way."

It was a heady feeling to know that Damen loved him for such a long time. Laurent smiled, his fingers playing with the soft hair in Damen's nape. "You know, I only ever loved you. You were the reason I realized I liked men, you were my first and only heartache and you were the reason Auguste gifted me lube on my eighteenth birthday. I will never forget that humiliation. As if I wasn't capable of buying some myself."

Damen laughed. "Really?"  
"Yes."  
"Good. I didn't understand it then but I was so angry at Auguste on that day. I wanted to smack his head against the wall."  
"I am glad you didn't."

"Me too." Damen's lips found Laurent's jaw, his hands started to wander. Over Laurent's naked chest, counting every single ridge of his stomach, wandering lower and lower.  
Laurent smiled and drew Damen over himself like a blanket. The resulting kiss was hot and heavy, speaking of burning passion and consuming want.


End file.
